#valeri works for her dad in this au too so they know each other irl

[karkkidoeswriting]

OC Deep Dive Tag

Thank you for tagging me @writingamongther0ses ! (like several months ago sorry) I'll tag @oh-no-another-idea @author-a-holmes @talesofsorrowandofruin @kainablue, but as always absolutely no pressure!!

I'm doing this for Valeri from BCC.

Phobias and Other Fears: Valeri has a intense fear of fire, but specifically something catching flame. When there's already burning confined fire at no risk of spreading, like fire place or an oil lamp, it's no issue, but he cannot light up even just a candle himself because sudden catching of flame is terrifying to him. Might have something to do with him almost burning alive.

Pet Peeves: People not understanding how to handle horses or dogs. For example when someone birches a horse for refusing to move because it's afraid of something instead of easing it's fear or someone gets mad at a dog for biting them after they try to take it's food. Also (rich) people who think of themselves very rational and above superstition and magical thinking.

3 Items You Can Find in Their Bedroom:

1. A pistol and a short sword (I'm grouping these), because he's the type of person who sleeps better when holding a hilt of a weapon. 2. Poppy tea for his back pain. 3. His childhood clothing hidden under a floor board.

First Thing They Notice in a Person: Probably their physique or the general way they hold themselves.

On a Scale of 1-10, How High is Their Pain Tolerance?: 10. He has chronic pain so high pain tolerance is kinda a given.

Do They Go Into Fight or Flight Mode When Under Pressure?: Fight. He is a cavalry man so fighting under pressure is pretty much his job, but he's also just generally a very hot-headed violence-is-the-answer kind of person.

Do They Come From a Big Family/are They a Family Person?: He comes from a big family, which included extended family too. He had four siblings and his grandma, one uncle, couple of cousins and second cousins lived with them too. Other extended family also spend much time in their castle. The clan as a whole was very much family. He is very much a family person. He has only his younger sibling left, but he is his whole world. There's couple of other family members still alive but he either doesn't know or they are in exile or as hostage. His only real dream for future is to get married and have several children. He likes kids a lot. But currently he's too deep in survival mode to try to actually live a life and also he is too socially anxious anyway to like try to have romantic relationships.

What Animal Represents Them Best?: Obviously a dog. He is even called a dog several times in the story and he's not even mad because he thinks dogs are better than people. He is a loyal pack animal, a feral attack dog, overprotective watch dog and obedient good boy who wants to have a master to please and tell him what to do. He is also very petable and craves physical affection (the man is touch starved), but also he might bite (metaphorically, maybe?) if he's touched in a wrong way, so like most times. I have an internal running joke that he would absolutely be a furry if he knew the concept (but like he would keep it as a shameful secret, the repression is strong). His fursona is Karelian Bear Dog.

What is a Smell That They Dislike?: Smell of burning hair triggers instant trauma reaction. But when it comes to more dislike and less PTSD, he hates the smell of fish, because he worked as a child in the docs and had to smell fish from morning to evening (I didn't say no PTSD), and general smoky and stuffy city air.

Have They Broken Any Bones?: Plenty, but surprisingly not super badly broken bones. His ribs have been broken several times, his arm has been broken, and most embarrassingly he broke his hand by hitting a wall in anger.

How Would a Stranger Likely Describe Them?: A tall imposing man with permanent scowl.

Are They a Night Owl or Morning Bird?: Morning bird. Not because he's super good with mornings but because he's slow to wake up and very grumpy couple of hours after he wakes regardless of when he wakes up, so he rather wakes early to have time before other people wake. He takes his dogs for an hour walk every morning when the sun is rising.

What is a Flavor They Hate and a Flavor They Love?: Hates fish, loves tea and sweet almond cake of the temples.

Do They Have Any Hobbies?: Plays piano and violin.

Boom, Surprise Birthday Party! How Do They React to Surprises?: With panic and anxiety. Might accidentally punch someone as a panicked reaction. He's not at all fan of surprises and he would be pretty pissed afterwards. He likes to know how things go before hand. Sudden jump-scare surprises are his own personal horror movie.

Do They Like to Wear Jewelry?: Generally speaking he doesn't like to wear jewelry, it's usually an uncomfortable sensory experience, so he usually wears just a very simple band as a fillet, and no earrings or rings. One exception is that he wears his mother's ring in his neck hidden under clothes at all times, their family heirloom he took from his mother's dead finger before escaping enemy soldiers.

Do They Have Neat or Messy Handwriting?: Pretty neat. He's a slow writer because he's very precise about it.

What Are the Two Emotions They Feel the Most?: Anxiety and rage.

Do They Have a Favourite Fabric?: Linen. Temperature changes worsens his chronic pain and hot is usually the issue so light linen is the most comfortable fabric for him. Also he sweats easily and linen helps with that too. He also really likes the sensory experience of soft linen that has texture but is still very soft and comfortable.

What Kind of Accent Do They Have? His accent is not very strong, but his distinct working class Amarian accent he picked up growing up comes through. He code switches when talking to his superiors, and the accent is much more subdued then. There's also a hint of Cerfi accent still left in his round Rs.